You'll find CCTV in places that require surveillance for monitoring activity, whether it's for crime prevention or accident detection. For home surveillance cameras, they are used for a little bit of both, which is why proper placement is required to maximize their usefulness. The question is: Where should you install them?
Front Door
This one is a no-brainer. Most of the time, front doors are where people come and go, so it's important to keep a close watch on that area to see whether there are intruders, or to identify who the person is at the door before you answer it.
The best device you can use for this is a doorbell camera. Certain models come with smart features that not only help with the detection of items like packages, but also come with software that can recognize whether or not there's someone at the door.
Back Door
If anything, having a camera watching the back door could be just as important. Robbers or other kinds of perpetrators will likely steer clear of the front door given that they don't want to be seen or detected, so they will go for other points of entry.
Adding a camera somewhere above your back door would also allow you to have a wider view of the backyard or the area behind your house. That means that you might even see intruders right away before they can even get to the door.
Basement
While this might not be the top priority for most, some houses have basements that are meant to keep valuables. In that case, having a camera to monitor your belongings might help with recovery or catching the perpetrator when you try to recover them.
This also becomes important when your basement is built with a separate entrance from the outside. Like the back door, they can also serve as entry points to people who are not welcome. You can even use it for things as simple as flood monitoring.
Garage Door
Again, another entry point in your home. Your garage is where you park your car, and you never know when someone could be bold enough to enter your home just to steal your vehicle or its parts, or even vandalize them for whatever reason.
Plus, having a camera might be enough to deter them from committing any crime in the first place. You would also be thankful that you have footage should your car be stolen, especially when you have to deal with the authorities or insurance companies.
Living Room
Living rooms are where a lot of things happen. In some cases, it's the first thing a person enters once they get in the house. Not only can this catch potential break-ins, you can also use the camera to watch over your loved ones.
While there are CCTV cameras that you can just place on top of a table or a mantel, it's best to place one at a higher place like your ceiling. That way, you'll have more visualization of the whole room including the floors.
Driveway
Your doorbell camera can only see what's in front of your door and not your whole front yard. Doorbell cameras are important for close-up video feeds to have a better look at the people who come and go, and they have safety features that help with identification.
Cameras in driveways help you see a wider range. There are a lot of things that can happen in front of your home, whether it's neighbors or strangers littering on your land, or other activities you can catch and report like vandalism or destruction of property.
